Tuesday, February 14, 2017

“MOUNTAIN STAGE” THREATENED BY STATE BUDGET CUTS

A major slash in state funding for West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) is putting the
future of the popular syndicated program Mountain
Stage [link] in jeopardy. WVPB also operates statewide public radio and PBS
TV networks.

Last week West
Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) announced that a $4.6 million annual
allocation to WVPB will be cut to zero as of July 1, 2017. If this and other
proposed cuts pass the legislature (which is expected) Mountain Stage will lose around $300,000 in funding. Approximately
half of WVPB’s annual income comes from the state government.

Mountain Stage host Larry Groce total local reporters that
he understands the state is in a bind and that the show was prepared to make
cuts, but zero funding is unfair:

“Anybody who is objective
would say this show and public broadcasting in general is doing a lot for the
state to up the image of the state and to attract people to the state. I'm
really not sure what the reasoning is.”

Mountain Stage at WV Cultural Center
Theater in Charleston

The reason for the
cuts to WVPB is unclear. But the plan appears to be in lock-step with DC
defunding effort. The $4.6 million WVPB receives is part of $26.6 million in the
cuts Gov. Justice is seeking. Observers at West
Virginia Metro News [link] say most other state projects will still receive
funding and it appears WVPB is being specifically targeted. The Governor’s
office is making no comments about the pending cuts at WVPB.

Governor Justice is
selling the budget cuts as a choice between essential programs and programs he
says are not needed. This mirrors the rational the “defund CPB mantra” by the
Trumpians in Washington, DC.

Susan Hogan,
chairwoman of Friends of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, told the Charleston Gazette-Mail [link] the
organization wouldn’t have time to come up with alternative funding before the
beginning of the new budget year, on July 1st.

“We don’t have a contingency
plan, and you can’t do that in a couple months. We believe this would be unwise
and irresponsible. We understand the state needs to save money, but such a
drastic and immediate cut threatens the very existence of our state’s PBS and
NPR stations.”

The cut would
result in the layoffs of up to 75 percent of the staff, according to a statement from WVPB’s management.

Mountain Stage is a
carried by approximately 200 noncommercial stations in the US. Most editions
are recorded in front of a live audience at the West Virginia Culture Center
Theater in Charleston.